The Debate Between Marxism and the Constructive Socialism in Early Zionism

The paper discusses an early socialist Zionist debate that is still under-research. Ber Borochov, founder of the “Poalei Zion” socialist Zionist party (since 1906), aiming to promote a Marxist ideology, had conceived the society as a “Gesellschaft,” maintaining that the Zionist movement should encourage a capitalism-based Jewish society. As such, he argued, it would trigger a proletariat struggle against the bourgeoisie that would in turn bring about a class struggle and the establishment of socialism. Hence, according to this narrative, cooperation and intentional communities would become irrelevant and inconsistent with the objective rules of history.

                                           Nachman Syrkin, on the other hand, developed since 1898 utopian socialism and regarded society as a “Gemeinschaft.” He strove for cooperative socialism, encouraging intentional communities. During the second decade of the twentieth century, Borochov's theory grew less and less relevant to the life of the Zionist pioneers in the Yishuv whereas Syrkin's ideas achieved ever-growing popularity amongst the socialist Zionist leadership.

                                           Borochov passed away in 1917. Syrkin flourished: at a Poalei Zion conference in Stockholm (1919) he presented the paper “Constructive Socialism in Eretz Israel” which has been largely ignored by research. There he revealed his mature vision, a “Realistic Utopism,” described by Yosef Gorny: a detailed, but at the same time a flexible vision, based on the actual reality in Eretz Israel. In his paper, Syrkin illustrated a democratic society based upon cooperation and intentional communities, connected by a cooperative network. Those communities, he believed, would manifest relative equality and free relations between their members. “Communism,” Syrkin contended, would be the true fulfilment of the vision of the biblical prophets: justice and positive relations between people, living in creativity and peace with one another. Ultimately the development of Socialist Zionism in Yishuv was deeply influenced by that vision during the decades which followed.